My Crappy Ending
by Harunifuyu
Summary: Set after Fang, Fang reflects on his actions. First chapter is a song fic. Fang's POV! Better than the summary. Max X Fang! Please Read!
1. Chapter 1

**MY CRAPPY ENDING**

**SUMMARY: Set after Fang, Fang reflects on his actions. First chapter is a song fic. Fang's POV! Better than the summary.**

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN MAXIMUM RIDE OR THE SONG 'MY HAPPY ENDING'. THESE BELONG TO JAMES PATTERSON AND AVRIL LAVIGNE.**

I was sitting in an internet café in New York City. I had "acquired" a new laptop from a branch of Itex, where I had picked up a few helpers along the way. Of the experiments I had freed, three could fly. Two were Avian-American's, like me, a boy and a girl, and the third was a talking, flying dog. A lab, actually. Much smarter than Total, but don't tell him I said that (not that it matters, anymore).

"Raven! Where's the next hit?" Gwen yelled over the obnoxious noises that is New York City.

Oh, right. My 'new name'. Raven Phoenix Carn. I wanted to erase all traces of "Fang". I didn't want anything to remind me of what I had left behind. Gwen was the only one that knew. She also knew better than to mention it.

"It's in the city. "High School of Fashion Industries" 225 West 24th Street New York, New York, 10011-1794. We could even call them." I said.

"Ah! I love this song!" Sky (the flying, talking lab) said.

I cocked my head to listen.

_Oh oh oh_

_So much for my happy ending_

_Oh oh oh oh _

_So much for my happy ending_

_Oh oh oh oh_

_Let's talk this over_

_It's not like we're dead_

_Was it something I did_

_Was it something you said_

_Don't leave me hanging_

_In a city so dead_

_Held up so high on such a breakable thread_

Not dead, _yet_, you mean. This song wasn't doing anything except making me feel guiltier. Yeah, I had left. I thought it was for the best. I did it to protect them, to protect _Max_. I had explained it in the letter, but letter or no, I'm pretty sure Max was upset. She would be mad and sad. She would mope, but if she saw me, she would kick my butt and drag me back to the flock. And probably chain me someone or something. Maybe her? I wouldn't mind that, much.

_You were all the things I thought I knew_

_And I thought we could be_

_You were everything, everything that I wanted_

_We were meant to be supposed to be but we lost it _

_All of the memories so close to me just fade away_

_All this time you were pretending so much for my happy ending_

Glad _your_ memories fade, cuz mine just come back and try to bite me in the ass. For a while, I thought it was perfect. Me and Max. I thought it'd work out. Then Dylan had to show up and Angel had to go power-crazy. I still loved her, but what did it matter. I had left and Dylan was probably sitting there laughing at me for listening to him.

_Oh oh oh_

_So much for my happy ending_

_Oh oh oh oh _

_You got your dumb friends_

_I know what they say_

_They tell you I'm difficult_

_But so are they_

_But they don't know me_

_Do they even know you? (even know you)_

_All the things you hide from me _

_All the shit that you do_

My new friends aren't _that_ dumb. At least my talking dog _thinks_. People don't _have _to tell me you're difficult. I know you are. That's not why I left. That's not why I hid stuff. That's not why I snuck out. I did it so it wasn't all on your shoulders. I did it to protect you, Max. Great. Now I'm talking to Max in my head?

_You were all the things I thought I knew_

_And I thought we could be_

_You were everything, everything that I wanted_

_We were meant to be supposed to be but we lost it _

_All of the memories so close to me just fade away_

_All this time you were pretending so much for my happy ending_

_It's nice to know that you were there_

_Thanks for acting like you cared_

_And making me feel like I was the only one_

_It's nice to know we had it all_

_Thanks for watching as I fall_

_And letting me know we were done._

I _did_ care. I still do. I just couldn't stay. I couldn't stay with you. I couldn't 'watch you fall'. So instead I left. And probably caused you to fall. But, hey. As long as I don't have to watch. I really am an ass. I didn't think about what would happen after I left. I just thought about what _wouldn't_. All the bad stuff that might not happen if I left. Everything we could stop. With two flocks. With you focused on the flock and not _us_.

_He was everything, everything that I wanted_

_We were meant to be supposed to be but we lost it _

_All of the memories so close to me just fade away_

_All this time you were pretending so much for my happy ending_

_You were everything, everything that I wanted_

_We were meant to be supposed to be but we lost it _

_All of the memories so close to me just fade away_

_All this time you were pretending so much for my happy ending_

_Oh oh _

_So much for my happy ending_

_Oh oh oh_

_So much for my happy ending_

_Oh oh oh oh oh oh ohhhh_

My "Happy" ending? More like 'My Crappy Ending.

"Hello? Raven? Anyone in there?" Gwen said.

"Maybe he's dead?" Riko asked.

That still made me laugh. Riko means "truth" in Japanese. Not much came out of this kid's mouth that was true.

"I'm not dead." I muttered.

"Yay! Raven's alive!" Riko yelled, gaining us weird looks from the people around us. Well, he is seven…

Gwen was looking at me worriedly, but also understanding. She knew what I had been thinking about.

"Should we go, then?" She asked quietly.

"Yeah." I swallowed hard. "Let's go."

**AN: What do you think? I've been wanting to write a Maximum Ride fanfic and I am a HUGE Max X Fang supporter. I HATE, HATE, HATE DYLAN! Anyways, let me know what you think. **

**-Haru**


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2: FPOV**

We went back to our motel room and got ready. We dressed in all black (nothing new, for me at least). I did a little more research on the computer and then called everyone to the table.

"Yo. So, there are seven floors. The first two are actually the fashion school. The upper floors are restricted, as are the east stairwells and the basement. That's all Itex. The plan is to get into the school, and then take the stairs to the basement, which is where the kids are. We free as many as we can, grab a laptop of some files and get the hell out of there. If we get caught going down there, we say we are new and got lost. If we get caught while springing the kids, we're gonna have to fight our way out." I explained.

"How are we getting out?" Gwen asked.

"Sewers." I replied.

"Oh joy." Gwen said sarcastically.

"Will you be able to find them?"

"Have I ever not?" Gwen said, cockily.

"Smart-ass." I muttered.

"You should be used to it."

I snorted, almost smiling.

"You need to play more often," Gwen said, quietly. "that's the only time you smile."

"We're playing tomorrow, right?"

"I don't mean for a crowd. I mean just _play_."

I gave her a sad half-smile.

"See? You don't smile, anymore."

"Yeah." I spoke quietly. "I know."

She nodded. "Well. Let's get going that way we can practice later."

"Why don't we practice now? We have an hour before we go."

"I didn't think you ran on a strict time schedule."

I chuckled. "I don't." I moved to pick up my guitar and started playing. I had written a lot of songs lately-guess what they were about? I had started writing, and I didn't know what it was. They were stories, but it wasn't _a_ story. It was feelings. So then I decided they were songs. I learned how to play guitar, Gwen learned bass, and Riko was on the drums. A three man band. Ha.

I shook off my thoughts and started to sing.

_No sir, well I don't wanna be the blame, not anymore_

_It's your turn, so take a seat we're settling the final score_

_And why do we like to hurt, so much?_

_I can't decide_

_You have made it harder just to go on_

_And why, all the possibilities where I was wrong_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_I drowned out all my sense with the sound of its beating_

_And that's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_I wonder, how am I supposed to feel when you're not here_

_Cause I burned every bridge I ever built when you were here_

_I still try holding onto silly things, I never learn_

_Oh why, all the possibilities I'm sure you've heard_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_I drowned out all my sense with the sound of its beating (beating)_

_And that's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_Pain, make your way to me, to me_

_And I'll always be just so inviting_

_If I ever start to think straight_

_This heart will start a riot in me_

_Let's start, start, hey!_

_Why do we like to hurt so much?_

_Oh why do we like to hurt so much?_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win!_

_Whoa_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_Now I can't trust myself with anything but this_

_And that's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

I finished the song and put my guitar down. I just sat there for a minute, and then I spoke.

"Come on. Let's go."

"God, you are so bi-polar! Why can't you make up your mind?" Gwen asked, frustrated.

"I do. And then I change it."

"And you say _I'm_ a smart-ass?" Gwen muttered.

"Yup. Let's go."

She huffed, and I chuckled to myself, grinning.

"Oh my God! It's a miracle! You smiled! Who the hell are you and what have you done with the non-emotional Raven?" Gwen yelled.

"I am human."

She raised her eyebrow.

"Okay. I am _98%_ human. Better?" I restated.

"Yes."

I chuckled again. "Glad you believe in my humanity."

"Always." she said, smiling.

**AN: What did you think? Oh, the song is That's What You Get by PARAMORE. NOT ME! I DON NOT OWN THE SONG! I JUST LOVE IT! Next up is raid. Don't worry this is a FAX fanfic. No Gwang, or anything…Gwang? What the hell is wrong with me? Nevermind. I'm rambling. Let me know what you think, and thanks for reading.**

**-Haru**


	3. Chapter 3: Raid

**CHAPTER 3: FPOV**

**AN: PLEASE REVIEW. I got no reviews on the last chapter, and, believe it or not, they really do make me write faster. This week I was bored, so I'm updating fast, but when I get writer's block, or get busy, reviews are what make me write, so please review!**

**CHAPTER 3: FPOV**

We were standing in front of The High School of Fashion Industries aka Itex.

"Ready?" I asked.

"Yup." They murmured.

"Let's go." We walked into the building, and past the receptionist, who nodded her head in greeting. We made our way to the east side of the building. When we got to the stairwells, we looked around. The hallway was deserted.

"Okay. Do your thing, Riko." I whispered.

He moved to the control box on the side and hit a few buttons. He could hack into _anything_. He could get us through any door, any security system. I figured the door would set off an alarm if we just opened it. I had been right. But it was nothing Riko couldn't handle.

"Done." He said, happily. Sometimes he scared me more than Angel.

"Awesome." I said, and opened the door. No alarm. We darted through the door and down the stairs. We stayed on the left side, in the blind spots of the cameras. Luckily for us, evil scientists were still dumb. We ran down the stairs until we met another door at the bottom.

"Riko." I told the little boy, if you could call him that. He nodded and got us through. We went through the door and were met with cages full of experiments.

"Go." I said, and we split up, opening as many cages as possible. I was working on the last cage when we heard footsteps. Gwen looked at me.

"Go! Find the sewers and get them out. I'll get the files and follow you!" I said, finally getting the cage open.

Gwen nodded. She could find tunnels and sewers. She just _knew_ where they were. It was more helpful than you might think.

I ran to the corner, where I spotted a desk. I shuffled through some papers, uncovering a laptop. I grabbed it and then looked at the filing cabinets. I looked through them. I heard yelling in the stairwell. I slammed the filing cabinet shut and ran, gripping the laptop. I was almost to the door that Gwen and the others had gone out when I heard a shocked voice behind me. A voice I knew all to well.

"_Fang_?"

I turned slowly and swallowed hard.

"_Max._"

**AN: DUN-DUN-DUN! Uh-oh! Is fang gonna die? Sorry it was so short. Let me know what you think! Thanks for reading! PLEASE REVIEW!**

**-Haru**


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4: FPOV**

"_Max._" I choked out.

"What the _hell_ are you doing here?" She hissed.

"Springing experiments." I tried to answer coolly.

"What are you-!" She started.

"Um…guys, they'll be here soon." Nudge said hesitantly.

"Raven! Come on! They won't listen to me! They know you're the leader! Come on!" Gwen yelled desperately.

"Come on!" I muttered to the flock.

"Why should we listen to you?" Max glared at me. I tried hard not to flinch.

"Because if you don't you'll get caught." I breathed.

She glared at me. "Fine."

I nodded curtly and ran towards Gwen.

"Shut up!" I yelled over the newly-freed experiments confusion. They got quiet. "Listen. This is Gwen." I gestured to her standing beside me. "She can lead you out of here. Follow her if you don't wanna get put back in a cage." I gave her the laptop and ran back to the door.

"Raven! What the hell are you doing?"

"They're to close! I can hold them off long enough for y'all to get out." I said.

"Raven!" She yelled.

"You know how it goes! This is always the plan! Now get out of here."

"Where do we meet?" She asked.

"Roof."

"But you said that the upper floors…"

"Not this roof! The motel! Go. NOW!" I yelled, just as the whitecoats arrived. Gwen hesitated, but then ran, herding the kids down the tunnel. I punched one of the whitecoats, knocking him out. Another swung at me and I dodged. I threw another few punches until the kids were out of sight. Then, I ran.

I ran down the tunnel sewer. I could tell where they were and used that to follow them. I had finally developed an ability. I could sense people around me. I could pick them out and tell who they were. Or I could have someone in mind and be able to find them. I also got faster. Both on land and in the air. I saw light filtering in up ahead and I sped up. When I was under the shaft of light, I rocketed up wards, shooting a few hundred feet up in the air. Everyone had made it to the roof safely. I zoomed over head and then dropped out of the sky, scaring the shit out of Gwen.

"GWRAHHHH! Raven! Imma kill you one day!" She yelled.

"Whatever." I shrugged. "Where's Riko?"

"Talking to Sky."

"And where would that be?" I asked.

"I dunno. Use your GPS tracking thingy or whatever!"

I huffed. "You're useless." I started walking to Riko.

"Hey!" She yelled at my back.

I kept walking. When I got to Riko, he was grinning at me. "Raven! You're okay!"

"You think I'd let a couple whitecoats kill me? I'd never live that down."

"No shit. Because you'd be DEAD!" Gwen yelled in my ear.

"I'm right here, Stalker." I muttered.

"Stalker? WTF?"

"You followed me."

"I wasn't done YELLING AT YOU!"

"What about now?"

"I HATE you!"

"Love you, too. Stalker."

"ARGHHHHH!"

Riko was cracking up. I was trying really hard not to.

"Raven! I swear to God! I'm going to-"

"What?" I asked, laughing now. "Kill me?"

"Did those whitecoats slip you some happy pills or something?" Sky asked.

"Nah. At least I hope not. But we just hacked into Itex and freed a bunch of kids, so I'm in a pretty good mood. Good job, Riko." I said, ruffling his hair.

He grinned up at me. "Can we go practice, now?"

"Soon. But first, recruiting. And I have some business to take care of. You still got the laptop?" I asked Gwen.

"Yeah. You gonna be okay?" She asked, knowing what I meant by 'business'. Or _who_.

"Of course. I'm me." I said.

"Lose the cockiness. You look better without it."

"Well, thanks, I guess."

"Anytime. C'mon Riko. We must RECRUIT!" she said, pulling him along.

"Raven! Help me!" Riko yelled.

"Sorry, Rik. I don't wanna die."

"WAHHHH!"

"Can it, little man. It's not that bad." Gwen said. Rik looked terrified.

I took a deep breath and walked over to where the flock stood, watching our antics curiously.

"Hey." I said.

"Fang!" Nudge yelled and ran up to give me a hug.

I laughed. "Hey Nudge."

Angel and Gazzy ran up and hugged me, too. Iggy came over and grinned.

"Running a business are we, Fang?"

I laughed again, grinning. I was about to answer when Gwen walked up.

"Not really. Just returning the favor." She said. "And man, Raven, I think they did slip you some happy pills. I've never seen you grin like this."

"Like I would be acting happy if a whitecoat shoved pills down my throat." I snorted. "What do you want, anyways?"

"Recruiting's done. We got two newbies. You gotta give them the intro course."

"Alright. Where are the rest of them going?"

"They're splitting up. Going in separate directions. Why?"

"I need to talk to them."

"They aren't gonna come with us."

"They don't need to come with _us_, but if they go alone, they'll die. The whitecoats'll come after them."

"They're all yours."

"Yo!" I yelled across the rooftop. "Look, you don't have to join us, but don't stay alone. The whitecoats will go after you. Stay together and you have a better chance of surviving."

I walked back to Gwen. "There. I'm done."

"Good. Now, Newbies!"

I sighed. "Fine."

I followed Gwen to a couple winged kids standing by Rik and sky.

"Hey. I'm Raven, this is Gwen, Riko-we call him Rik-, and Sky, our talking, flying dog. What are your names?" I asked.

"I'm Alya." A tall, pale skinned girl said. She had dark brown, almost black, hair that was cropped short, about mid neck. "It means 'sky'".

"Cool. And you?" I asked the boy, who was probably about 12 or 13. He had short, messy, sandy brown hair. He was fairly tall, about Nudge's height.

"I'm Jay."

"Awesome. So this is our group, or flock. If you haven't figured it out already, we go to different branches of Itexicon, look for information about their plans and free kids like us who are locked in cages. We also formed a band, Winged Fury, to help with money. We actually have a show tomorrow that we need to practice for, so we should go inside. But first, we'll get you some clothes. There's a store down on the corner, they'll have clothes. Fly down in back. Then we can walk the rest of the way." That was probably the longest I've ever spoken. Everyone who knew me looked shocked. I sighed. "Yes, I talked. Can we go now?"

Gwen grinned. "Sure, Captain!"

"Captain?"

"What, you don't like it? I thought it sounded better than 'evil-winged-child-who-hacks-into-buildings-and-corrupts-small-children'."

"I'm evil? And since when am _I_ the one who corrupts them?"

"Okay, so it was flawed. Earlier today you said you were human."

"I'm 98%! And I corrected myself! Now let's go, or did you not want to practice?"

"No!" Rik howled. "I wanna practice! I wanna play Dear Mr. President!"

I laughed. "Yeah. That's a good song."

"All the songs you write are good."

"Thanks, Rik. Now can we go, or is it ignore Raven's orders day?"

"Let's go!" Riko yelled happily. I laughed at him. He could act like a regular little kid. Sometimes.

"Hey Fang!" Nudge yelled excitedly. "Can we stay with you tonight?"

I hesitated, then smiled at her. "It's fine with me, It's up to Max, though."

"Can we Max? Pleeeease?" Nudge begged.

"Nudge," Max looked at her firmly.

"Max. Let us stay." Angel said.

"Fine." Max sighed. "We can stay."

"Cool. Rik, Sky. Will y'all show them our room? We'll get another one in a minute, but first we're going to get some clothes."

"Okay!" Rik said. "C'mon! I'll show you our room! We have a bunch of instruments and CD's! Come look!"

"That kid is _way_ too excited." I muttered. "Come on. Let's go find you some clothes." I yelled, as I flew down into the parking lot. _Well,_ I thought to myself. _This is going to be an interesting night._

**AN: Hope you liked it! It was LONG! Over FOUR pages long! That's the longest chapter I've written in ANY of my fanfics! Let me know what you think…and how Max should kill Fang. ****J**

**-Haru**


	5. Chapter 5: Practicing

**CHAPTER 5: FPOV**

After we had gotten clothes, we headed back to our room. Riko pounced on me before I got my foot in the door.

"Raven! Come on! Y'all took so long! We gotta practice! Come on, Gwen! Hurry! Here's your guitar!" He rushed, thrusting it at me.

"Hey! Easy! Don't break the instruments! They aren't cheap!" I said, taking it from him.

"Come on!" He yelled.

"Yeah, 'Raven'. Play for us." Angel smirked.

"Thanks, Ange. It means a lot." I said sarcastically. She smiled innocently.

Gwen picked up her bass as Riko ran to his drum set.

"Dear Mr. President! Please!" Riko begged.

"Alright. We are gonna play that one tomorrow, so I should practice it…"

"Yes!" He squealed.

I started playing my guitar. It was an acoustic song-just me and my guitar. I started singing.

_Dear Mr. President,_

_Come take a walk with me._

_Let's pretend we're just two people and_

_You're not better than me._

_I'd like to ask you some questions if we can speak honestly._

_What do you feel when you see all the homeless on the street?_

_Who do you pray for at night before you go to sleep?_

_What do you feel when you look in the mirror?_

_Are you proud?_

_How do you sleep while the rest of us cry?_

_How do you dream when a mother has no chance to say goodbye?_

_How do you walk with your head held high?_

_Can you even look me in the eye_

_And tell me why?_

_Dear Mr. President,_

_Were you a lonely boy?_

_Are you a lonely boy?_

_Are you a lonely boy?_

_How can you say_

_No child is left behind?_

_We're not dumb and we're not blind._

_They're all sitting in your cells_

_While you pave the road to hell._

_What kind of father would take his own daughter's rights away?_

_And what kind of father might hate his own daughter if she were gay?_

_I can only imagine what the first lady has to say_

_You've come a long way from whiskey and cocaine._

_How do you sleep while the rest of us cry?_

_How do you dream when a mother has no chance to say goodbye?_

_How do you walk with your head held high?_

_Can you even look me in the eye?_

_Let me tell you 'bout hard work_

_Minimum wage with a baby on the way_

_Let me tell you 'bout hard work_

_Rebuilding your house after the bombs took them away_

_Let me tell you 'bout hard work_

_Building a bed out of a cardboard box_

_Let me tell you 'bout hard work_

_Hard work_

_Hard work_

_You don't know nothing 'bout hard work_

_Hard work_

_Hard work_

_Oh_

_How do you sleep at night?_

_How do you walk with your head held high?_

_Dear Mr. President,_

_You'd never take a walk with me._

_Would you?_

As I finished the song, Riko was clapping loudly.

"How come _he_ gets paid for screwing up the nation?" Gwen muttered.

"It's fucked up. Like a lot of other shit in the world." I said.

"Yup! Good song! That's one of my favorites! What about Already Gone? And Sober? And That's What You Get?" Riko said hurriedly.

"Slow down, kid. Gwen's singing Sober, I'm doing Already Gone, and that's what the show tomorrow is featuring. And I practiced That's What You Get before we left on the run." I _really_ didn't want to play Already Gone in front of Max…

"But we didn't practice it all together."

"Okay, then let's do that one next."

Riko hit the drum and then me and Gwen came in. After a few bars, I started singing.

_No sir, well I don't wanna be the blame, not anymore_

_It's your turn, so take a seat we're settling the final score_

_And why do we like to hurt, so much?_

_I can't decide_

_You have made it harder just to go on_

_And why, all the possibilities where I was wrong_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_I drowned out all my sense with the sound of its beating_

_And that's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_I wonder, how am I supposed to feel when you're not here_

_Cause I burned every bridge I ever built when you were here_

_I still try holding onto silly things, I never learn_

_Oh why, all the possibilities I'm sure you've heard_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_I drowned out all my sense with the sound of its beating (beating)_

_And that's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_Pain, make your way to me, to me_

_And I'll always be just so inviting_

_If I ever start to think straight_

_This heart will start a riot in me_

_Let's start, start, hey!_

_Why do we like to hurt so much?_

_Oh why do we like to hurt so much?_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win!_

_Whoa_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_That's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

_Now I can't trust myself with anything but this_

_And that's what you get when you let your heart win, whoa_

"Wait! We gotta play Help I'm Alive!" Riko yelled.

"Chill out! Stop yelling! We can hear you!" I said back.

"Help I'm Alive?"

I sighed. "Yes. We can play that next."

The flock was looking at me, shocked.

"When did you learn to play the guitar, Fang?" Nudge asked.

"I-"

"Fang?" Rik asked.

"Riko. It's his old name…" Gwen said, knowing I didn't want to talk about it.

"But you're Raven…"

"I'm both." I said. "I used to go by Fang, now I go by Raven. You can call me either one."

"Okay…" He trailed off.

I turned to Nudge and explained. "I started writing songs, so then I learned how to play guitar and a few other instruments. Gwen learned bass, and Riko learned the drums. We formed a band to get some money for our 'excursions'."

"That's so COOL, Fang!" She all but screamed.

I laughed. Max had stayed silent the whole time, just staring at me, but if I looked at her, she would glare and turn away. It was going to take a while to fix things, if I ever could.

**AN: This was kind of a filler chapter, but I wanted to do some of the songs and have the flock kind of hear about Fang's life since he left. Song credits: Dear Mr. President by P!nk, That's What You Get by Paramore, and Help I'm Alive by Metric (They haven't played this one yet.). Let me know what you think! Thanks for reading! Next up: The Concert!**


	6. Chapter 6: Why?

**CHAPTER 6: FPOV**

The next morning, I was woken up by a way-to-excited-seven-year-old yelling in my ear.

I groaned.

"Come on, Raven! Wake up! We have a concert today!" Riko screamed.

"That's not until 6 PM tonight! What time is it anyways?"

"5 in the morning." Gwen muttered.

"Are you _insane_?" I demanded.

"Nope!" Riko said cheerfully, while Gwen muttered "Probably."

"Then why are you up?"

"Because I was excited!"

I groaned again and rolled off the couch. "Fine, I'm up. What do y'all want for breakfast?"

Gwen looked at me like I was crazy. "You realize that we have ten bird kids ad two talking dogs here, right? You seriously plan to _cook_ for all of them?"

"Oh, yeah. I kinda forgot. I'll go get something and bring it back. You two should stay here in case the flock wakes up." I said, feeling incredibly stupid.

"Too late." Max said. _Crap._

"Sorry. We didn't mean to wake you up." I mumbled. "I'm gonna go get breakfast. I'll be back in a little while."

"I'll go with you." Max said, shocking everyone.

"You don't have to." I said, not wanting her to come because she felt like she had to, although part of me felt like a kid on Christmas morning at the thought of her _wanting_ to come with me.

"I know."

"Okay. Doughnuts good?" I asked Riko.

"Yes! We haven't had doughnuts in forever!"

I almost smiled at his excitement. "Alright. We'll be back in a few." And I walked towards the door, with Max following silently.

When we got out on the street, I sighed. "Why did you come with me if you aren't going to say anything?" I asked.

"I don't know. You shouldn't go on your own." She mumbled.

"I'm not helpless."

"I know that!" She hissed.

"Then why come? I'm not part of your flock anymore. You don't have to feel responsible for me anymore." I said, even though it killed me.

"Dammit, Fang! You should know why!" She yelled.

"No, I don't! I left, Max! I have no idea why you stayed last night! I have no idea why you came with me! You have to be pissed at me, so I don't know why!" I yelled back. _She couldn't still care about me. I left. I abandoned them, even if it was for their own good. She couldn't still care._

"Why did you leave! I read that stupid letter, but how could you leave us! We were your family! And you just _replaced _us?" She screamed at me, pain coming through.

I cringed at that. "I didn't replace you! I left so they wouldn't hurt you! I left for the flock!"

"Then why are you with _them_?"

"Because I can't do it on my own!"

"Do what?"

"Stop Itex!" I yelled without thinking.

She looked shocked. "What?" She asked quietly.

"I'm stopping Itex. I'm freeing all the experiments. I'm destroying Itex. _All of it_." I said, trying to control my emotions.

"Why? That's not your responsibility anymore!"

"Because I love you!" I screamed and then we both froze. Her eyes got big.

"Fang-" She started.

I ducked my head and turned. "Forget it. Come on. We need to go get breakfast." I said, walking off down the street. It was all I could do not to take off and scream to the sky.

**AN: Sorry for the shortness! Hopefully I'll get the next chapter up tomorrow, if not later today. Hope you liked it! Thanks for reading! Fax says to review!**

**-Haru**


	7. Chapter 7: Come Back

**CHAPTER 7: Max POV**

_What the hell?_ I couldn't believe it when we had walked in to Itex, expecting to find cages of kids and instead, we found Fang. But he wasn't _Fang_ anymore. And then Nudge had begged me to stay. I wanted to stay. I wanted to see him, but I couldn't forget that he left. But I couldn't help but want to be near him. Just like he said. I was focused on him. I saw how he acted around _Gwen_ and it made me so mad. Even if he had left, I still wanted him to be _mine_.

When I volunteered to go with him to get breakfast, I wasn't thinking. I just said it automatically. There was a silence between us, but it wasn't a comfortable silence like we always had. It was so awkward. But I didn't know what to say. And then he broke the silence and we started arguing. His last words were still ringing in my head when we walked into the doughnut shop. _"Because I love you!"_ I knew he had said that in the letter, but him leaving had hurt so much that I found it impossible to believe that he still loved me. Now, I didn't know what to think. I wanted to believe him. I wanted to kick his butt and then drag him home with us. But I didn't think I could handle it if he left again. It had taken so long to get used to not seeing his half grin, his stupid, perfect hair, and his dark wings. I didn't know what to do anymore.

We were almost back to the motel when Fang cleared his throat.

"How long are y'all staying?" He asked.

"I don't know. Why? Do you want us to leave?" I asked, scared of his answer.

"I don't know." He sighed.

"You have a concert tonight?" I asked.

"Yeah."

"I think Nudge wants to go."

"Just Nudge?" He asked, looking at me knowingly.

I felt my cheeks heat up.

He chuckled. I had missed that, too.

"Come if you want to. Just let me know so I can get tickets."

"I'm pretty sure you should get tickets."

He laughed again. "Alright."

"What's your band called?"

"Winged Fury. Fitting, huh?"

Now it was my turn to laugh. "Yeah."

We were silent for a few minutes, but it wasn't as awkward.

"Hey Fang?"

"Hn?"

"Why did you change your name?" I asked.

"I didn't want any reminders of what I left behind." He said quietly.

"I guess we screwed that plan to hell."

"Yeah." He said, a small smile playing on those lips that I wanted to kiss so badly.

We started walking up the stairs to his room.

"Fang?"

"Yeah?"

"We miss you."

"I missed y'all too."

I swallowed the lump in my throat, afraid to ask my next question.

"Come back." I whispered quietly.

He looked at me, startled, and then sighed. "I can't."

"Why not?" I was trying to hold back the tears that were pushing themselves out of my eyes. I hated crying. It made me feel weak.

"I can't just leave _my_ flock."

"They can come, too! We can all make one big flock! Just come back!" I could feel tears slowly starting to make their way down my cheeks. I angrily wiped them away.

"_Max_." Fang grabbed my hand. " You can't focus when I'm around."

"I can't focus when you _aren't_ either!" I screamed at him. "I can only wonder about you!"

He closed his eyes. "Why should I come back?" He whispered.

I froze. I knew why _I_ wanted him back, but I couldn't admit it to him. "B-Because they miss you. They want you to come back. Especially the boys." I rushed through my explanation.

He slowly opened his eyes and looked at me. He shook his head. "_That's not good enough._" He sighed and then opened the door, turning away from me.

**AN: Sorry, NOW the concert's next. Will Max confess her love for Fang before it's too late? Or will she continue being a stubborn mule and refuse to admit it? Let me know what you think! Hope you liked it, and sorry it's short. Fax says REVIEW!**

**-Haru**


	8. Chapter 8: The Concert

**CHAPTER 8: FPOV**

At 5, we were busy getting ready for our concert, while I was desperately trying to clear my head of my earlier conversations with Max. _Come back._ God, she had no idea how much I wanted to, but there was only one reason to risk her life to be with her. And until she gave me that reason, I wasn't going back.

I was also kicking myself for telling her that I still loved her. How _dumb_ could I get?

"Raven! Focus! We gotta nail this! We're running low on money. C'mon!" Gwen said.

"Yeah. Got it. Focused." I muttered. The flock was out there watching us. _Max_ was out there watching us. Watching _me_. Oh shit.

"Raven!" Gwen said warningly.

I mentally shook my head, clearing my thoughts.

**MPOV:**

We were sitting in the audience. I almost _cried_ at some of the songs Fang was singing. I had never heard him sing before. It was amazing. His voice was like a steady stream, flowing through the crowd, mesmerizing them. You couldn't leave. It froze you in place. You _had _to hear it. When a song was over, you wanted more. You never wanted it to end. I could see how they were living off the money they made from their concerts. I didn't know why he was still working to stop Itex when he could just do this for the rest of his life. _Because he's a good guy_. I thought. He couldn't just leave the world to its doom. He had to _try_. Maybe that's why he left. Maybe that's why he wouldn't come back.

I knew the "reason" he wanted to come back. I knew I could give it to him, and it wouldn't be a lie. But what if he still wouldn't come. I wouldn't be able to handle that. Because I still loved him.

"Oh my GOD, Max!" Nudge screamed in my ear. "Fang is AMAZING!"

"Yeah." I muttered. "He is."

I almost laughed when he sang "Help I'm Alive" and almost cried when he sang That's What You Get.

Then they started playing a song that I hadn't heard him practice before.

"This is our last song tonight! It's our new song called Already Gone." Fang yelled through the microphone. "Thanks for coming out!"

_Remember all the things we wanted_

_Now all our memories they're haunted_

_We were always meant to say goodbye_

_Even with our fists held high_

_It never would've worked out right_

_We were never meant for do or die_

_I didn't want us to burn out_

_I didn't come here to hold you, now I can't stop_

_I want you to know that it doesn't matter_

_Where we take this road someone's gotta go_

_And I want you to know you couldn't have loved me better_

_But I want you to move on so I'm already gone_

_Looking at you makes it harder_

_But I know that you'll find another_

_That doesn't always make you want to cry_

_Started with a perfect kiss then we could feel the poison set in_

_Perfect couldn't keep this love alive_

_You know that I love you so, I love you enough to let you go_

_I want you to know that it doesn't matter_

_Where we take this road someone's gotta go_

_And I want you to know you couldn't have loved me better_

_But I want you to move on so I'm already gone_

_I'm already gone, already gone_

_You can't make it feel right when you know that it's wrong_

_I'm already gone, already gone_

_There's no moving on so I'm already gone_

_Already gone, already gone, already gone_

_Already gone, already gone, already gone, yeah_

_Remember all the things we wanted_

_Now all our memories they're haunted_

_We were always meant to say goodbye_

_I want you to know that it doesn't matter_

_Where we take this road someone's gotta go_

_And I want you to know you couldn't have loved me better_

_But I want you to move on so I'm already gone_

_I'm already gone, already gone_

_You can't make it feel right when you know that it's wrong_

_I'm already gone, already gone_

_There's no moving on so I'm already gone_

This time, I _did_ cry. It was so obviously about him leaving the flock. I felt tears flood my eyes and roll down my cheeks. Nudge gasped from beside me.

"Max! Are you okay?"

I couldn't speak, so I just nodded my head slowly.

When the song ended, everyone erupted into applause. Fang and his band bowed and walked off stage. The applause continued for a while, but eventually it faded away. I headed towards the stage, where Fang was standing, talking with someone. _Probably some crazed fan girl._ I thought bitterly.

When I got closer I realized that it was a man. He and Fang were laughing. I could only hear what Fang said.

"Yeah. That sounds like fun. I'll work on writing it and I'll let you know when I finish. Airplanes?"

_What? That made zero sense._ I leaned in closer to hear what the stranger said.

"Okay. I'll talk to some friends and see if anyone's interested. I bet a lot of companies will be, after you put on a show like this."

Fang grinned. "Cool. Let me know."

"Will do. See ya 'round, Raven." He said, waving.

"See ya." Fang nodded and turned to me. " Eavesdropping? Wow, Max. Impressive."

"Shut up. I wanted to talk to you, but you were talking to him. What was that about?"

"A project and he's gonna try to find us a record company who will produce a CD."

"Cool. That's awesome, Fang. You sounded great."

"Thanks. So what did you want to talk to me about. I doubt it was just to compliment me." He said, staring at me.

I gulped. _Crap_. He knew me too well. "Umm, I wanted to ask you to come back with us again. You and your flock. We can join together. We'd get a lot more done that way. You can keep playing and writing songs, just with us, too."

"Why?"

"Because I want you to."

"Yeah, I got that, since you're _asking_ me. But _why_ do you want me to?"

"Because…" I trailed off.

"What, Max?"

"Do I really have to say it?" I demanded. "Are you that dumb?"

"That's the only way I know for sure." He answered simply.

"I could be lying. I lie a lot." I said.

"Not to me." He stared at me, looking into my soul. He was right. He knew me better than anyone. I couldn't lie to him; he always knew.

"Because I love you." I whispered.

Something sparked in his eyes. He smirked. "Good."

"Fang! So will you come?"

He looked up at the sky, then back at me. "No." He said evenly.

"Fang! Damn you! Why not? Why do-!" I started. He cut me off.

"I won't go. That doesn't mean you can't _stay._"

**AN: Hope you liked it. Sorry, I didn't do much about the actual concert, but it wasn't exactly the most important part. It was mainly so Max would tell Fang she loved him. What do you think will happen next? Will Max stay? Will Fang/Raven go? Or will they go separate ways…again? Let me know what you think! Thanks for reading! Please review!**

**-Haru**


	9. Chapter 9: Staying? Leaving?

**CHAPTER 9**

**AN: I would like to thank Live In Today for their support. They have reviewed on almost EVERY CHAPTER! THAT'S AWESOME! I LOVE YOU (In a non-creepy way)! THANK YOU!**

**CHAPTER 9: FPOV**

"_I won't go. That doesn't mean you can't _stay_."_

She just stared at me, her mouth hanging open. After a few minutes, she started stuttering.

"F-Fang…But…what?" She finally managed to get out.

"I'm not leaving. I'm staying in New York because I have business to attend to here. I'm not leaving, but that doesn't mean you can't stay." I said, somewhat calmly.

"Why? What's holding you here?" Sh e asked, confused.

"We might be able to get a CD out soon, and I'm about to start a project that will actually be _fun_. If I stay here, I can do that and work on stopping Itex at the same time."

"You're staying here because you can _have fun_? You won't come back with us because a project and a CD is more important than _your family_?" She asked, unbelievingly.

"And…" He hesitated. "And here…here I have a real family."

"_Real family_?" She screeched. "So what? We aren't good enough for you anymore?"

"No, Max. I mean I found my _real_ family. My _biological_ family." I said quietly.

"Oh." Realization hit her. "Like your parents?"

"My parents are dead. But I found my uncle and my siblings." I mumbled.

"_Siblings_?"

"Yeah. I have a younger brother and sister. And an older brother."

"Do they have.. You know…wings?" she whispered.

"Yeah. They can't fly. They're in hiding. They aren't being hunted. Yet. I'm trying to teach them. My uncle got us new identities. Like all our papers. Everything. He's a doctor, but he's sick. Cancer. It's killing him, slowly. And he's the only family we have left. They were here tonight. I'm supposed to go meet them afterwards. So I gotta go. Y'all can come with me or go back to the apartment or whatever, just decide." I said, and started walking away to meet up with my family.

"Fang…" Max said. "I'm sorry."

I shrugged.

"We'll stay." I heard her mumble.

I turned around and cocked my head. "Why?"

"I already told you, idiot." She said, a small smile gracing her lips. Lips…

I groaned. Max raised her eyebrow at me.

"What?" She asked.

"I really…I really wanna kiss you." I muttered.

She laughed and looked at me. I grabbed her hand and pulled her towards me. Her lips were barely and inch away from mine. I leaned forward and kissed her. God, it felt so good. I had missed this, so god damn much.

We finally pulled back to breathe and I put my forehead on hers, inhaling her scent.

"Go." She said, pushing me away. "You need to go meet your family. Where are they? I'll bring the flock."

"At the gates."

"Alright. See you in a few." She said, walking back towards the flock.

I smiled, a real smile, for the first time in the months since I left.

**AN: Sorry, I know it's short. Hope you liked it. Let me know what you think. Thanks for reading! Fax says REVIEW!**

**-Haru**


	10. SORRY! DON'T HATE ME!

**AN:**

**AN: I'M SO SORRY! PLEASE DON'T HATE ME!**

**Sorry that I haven't updated in a while, but my dad had knee surgery, and then it got infected so he had to go to the hospital AGAIN, and then my aunt decided that my cousin and I should go on a last minute trip to the beach, and then band camp started, so I haven't had a lot of time, or when I did, I hated everything I started writing. I might not be able to update much the next few weeks because I'm going to be at marching band camp for 6-8 hours a day, and afterwards, I'm EXHAUSTED! **

**I'm sorry, this is just an author's note, but I'M NOT DONE WITH THIS STORY! I just wanted to say that so you didn't think I abandoned it, Hopefully, I'll have the next chapter up soon, but it will probably be short. SORRY!**

**PLEASE FORGIVE ME! I LOVE YOU (IN A NON-CREEPY WAY IF THAT'S POSSIBLE!) ! SORRY!**

**-Haru**


End file.
